


Supplemental Materials

by Vigs



Series: One Multiverse Over [1]
Category: DCU
Genre: Gen, Original DC reboot, not a stand-alone work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-10
Updated: 2019-02-18
Packaged: 2019-08-20 18:51:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 15,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16561334
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vigs/pseuds/Vigs
Summary: This is not an independent story! This is a collection of summaries and in-universe documents from the One Multiverse Over setting.





	1. Reader's Guide

One Multiverse Over is intended to be a very large work. Not everybody is going to want to read every bit of it, whether it's because they're more interested in some characters than others or because they want to avoid certain triggers. (I try to be extremely careful about trigger warnings and content notes.) For that reason, I'm putting descriptions of each issue into this document.  **These descriptions are spoilers** **.** They are intended for people who want to skip a particular issue or chapter, not for people who want to read it.

I'm also throwing in some non-essential reading: in-universe documents, like Dr. Hamilton's summary of Superman's powers and personality and Zatanna's attempt to explain some aspects of magic to Batman. Those are just for fun. They come before the issue summaries so that people looking for supplemental reading don't accidentally see spoilers. I'm also indicating with chapter titles which ones are spoilers and which aren't. I hope this isn't too weird and confusing; trying to make my own version of the DC Universe is sort of a weird undertaking.


	2. The Colors of Magic

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Created during [Capes and Cowls #2](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16255256)

_ Mr. Wayne, _

_ I tried to write up something you’d be able to understand about magic and color, like we talked about. Let me know if anything didn’t end up being clear. I had my dad read it, and he said that he didn’t think words alone could completely capture the essences of the colors, but that nothing I wrote here was actually wrong. He also said to remind you that even if you do understand all this, color is only one part of magic, “so don’t get cocky.” _

_ ZZ _

 

The Colors of Magic

By Zatanna Zatara (apprentice to Giovanni Zatara)

Color is an important part of magic. Magic-users learn about color through instinct and experience, and find the color that they are most attuned to by feel. As such, it has always been assumed that the nature of magic color can’t be described to those who are not attuned to magic, the same way that the difference between an inert sigil and an empowered sigil can’t be described.

However, I believe that color may be an even more fundamental part of the universe than magic. Green Lantern seemed to use technology to tap into a power source extremely similar to that of green-aligned magic, which wouldn’t be possible if magic comes before color instead of the other way around. What I mean is, if first you have magic and then it divides into colors, then the colors wouldn’t be accessible by technology. If the colors come first, then theoretically they could be accessed either by magic or technology, although the technological means would have to be very advanced.

The colors of magic are related to the  _ telos _ of the mage.  _ Telos  _ is ancient Greek for “an ultimate object or aim.” It isn’t just about the immediate goal of the mage, although that may affect the colors that the mage calls on during the working; it’s about the mage’s ultimate goals, life goals, or highest priority. 

While researching the science of color, I concluded that color magic (or the underlying force that magic draws on, which I will call Color) has less to do with the artistic view of color than the view of color as light. The color wheel doesn’t work for Color. Red and purple are very far apart in Color, the way that they are in light wavelengths, instead of being right next to each other the way they are in the color wheel.

Black and white magic don’t work the way that black and white do in art or in light. Neither black nor white Color are a mix of the rest of the Colors, and the “secondary” colors aren’t mixes either; green’s not a mix of blue and yellow, for example.

Magic usually runs in families, and Colors do too, although not always. It’s pretty common for kids to be either the same Color mage as their parents, or only one step off. If mages of different Colors have a kid, that kid will probably be somewhere in between. The exception is orange magic. Orange mages are relatively rare, but if one has a kid, the kid will almost always be an orange mage too.

A mage of one Color can involuntarily switch to another Color. Some people manifest magical ability really early, and they’re nearly always black mages at that point, because little kids pretty much only care about themselves. Older kids are usually somewhere between black and orange. I was an orange mage when I was little, but I shifted to blue after mom left. After childhood, people’s colors generally match their parents’ and then don’t change unless they go through some major life event, usually a traumatic one.

When listing the Colors, it’s traditional to start with black. I did that here, and tried to explain what each Color means, how someone can go from being another Color of mage to being that Color, how mages who aren’t that Color use magic of that Color, and what magic of that Color specializes in.

  * Black: completely prioritizing yourself.
    * Black mages generally use their magic to make cool things for themselves, and don’t interact with the world much at all. They don’t cause trouble, but they also don’t help anyone but themselves. Most of them don’t even have any friends or care much about their family.
    * Some people become black mages if they lose everyone they cared about.
    * Using black magic when you aren’t a black mage usually involves a lot of meditation and centering.
    * Black magic can be used to create spaces that can’t be accessed by anyone but you. Dad keeps his really valuable books and components in a space he made with black magic, and even I can’t get into it. By extension, it can be used for teleportation.
  * Red: prioritizing yourself, but not so much that you don’t care about the world at all.
    * Red mages usually want power, for themselves and maybe for their friends or family. This doesn’t make them necessarily evil, because they don’t always misuse power if they have it, but they’re still the ones who are most likely to cause trouble.
    * Some people become red mages if they spend a long time feeling powerless.
    * Calling on red magic when you aren’t a red mage means temporarily getting yourself into an “it’s all about me” mindset. There are a bunch of methods for getting yourself into that mindset and then back out of it, but they’re sort of esoteric because people who aren't mages don't usually have any reason to try to get into that mindset.
    * Any mage can do some magic to harm others and strengthen themselves, but really powerful spells to do that are red magic. Dad and I don’t use red magic very much, not because it’s necessarily bad, but because if we get in fights we prefer to do tricky stuff instead of attacking head-on.
  * Orange: prioritizing your family.
    * This doesn’t have to mean just biological family, but it does have to be a small group that you’re a part of. Most masters and apprentices can produce orange magic together without much trouble, even if they’re not related. The reason individual orange mages aren’t very common is that most of them don’t marry other mages, which means that their kids are less likely to be mages at all, but if they are, they’ll almost definitely be orange mages too. Some orange mages are happy to just take care of their families, but some try to get more power for their families like a red mage might. Orange mages tend to be either really devoted parents and spouses, or really controlling and abusive ones. However they relate to their family, it’s always really intense.
    * Some people become orange mages when they have their first kid, but usually orange mages are related to other orange mages.
    * I don’t know much about calling on orange magic by yourself, because it’s easy for me and my dad to do it together, but he says that a lot of the time you have to have other members of your family around while you’re doing the spell or ritual, even if they aren’t mages themselves.
    * Orange magic is the only kind of magic that can create life. Mom and dad made a homunculus that used to babysit me, but she stopped working when mom left.
  * Yellow: prioritizing order.
    * Most of the Colors don’t really have “opposites,” but yellow and blue are definitely opposites, and my dad and I are blue mages, so this is the one that’s hardest for me to understand and to do. Dad says it’s important to remember that order can be a good thing because it brings safety, and that yellow mages think of blue mages as dangerous because we’re chaotic and unpredictable. Merlin was a yellow mage, and I guess he was a pretty good guy.
    * Some people become yellow mages if their life is negatively affected by something chaotic, like a crime or a revolution.
    * Calling on yellow magic is easiest in a very ordered environment, and you usually want to use symbols that are very geometric and rigid.
    * All mages can do a little healing, but powerful healing is yellow magic, because it’s getting bodies back in order, sort of. Yellow mages can also create _geasa_ , which are sort of like magical commands. I find that sort of uncomfortably mind-controlly, but there have been yellow mages who use _geasa_ to make people stop doing bad things.
  * Green: prioritizing community.
    * The difference between orange and green magic is a little hard to explain, because both of them mean prioritizing a group that you’re a part of, but aside from the fact that green mages tend to care about bigger groups than orange mages, green mages prioritize their communities at least as highly as themselves, while orange mages care a lot about themselves as part of their families. Green mages don’t cause a lot of trouble unless their community is very hostile or oppressive. Yellow, green, and blue are the middle colors; mages past yellow are mostly focused on themselves, and mages past blue are mostly focused on other people. Mom was (and probably still is) a green mage.
    * Some people become green mages when they first feel truly accepted by a community, or when their community is somehow threatened.
    * It’s important to have a community you care about if you want to use green magic. That’s one of the reasons dad and I mostly stay in Light City, because the performing community here is our community. It’s easiest to do green magic with another member of your community there, or at least right after interacting with your community. It’s also easier to use if you’re outdoors during the daytime, especially at noon. There are a couple of different theories about why, but most people agree that it’s about being part of a species that’s generally awake during the day. It can actually be hard not to let green magic predominate during the day, which is why mixed-color or all-color rituals (like the one we used to make those amulets) are usually done at night, preferably midnight.
    * Green magic is sort of all-purpose, mostly because it’s in the middle. If a bunch of mages are going to do a working together, unless they’re all one Color of mage or all one family, it’s going to be at least partly green magic.
  * Blue: prioritizing freedom.
    * I think the Ben Franklin quote "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety” sums up the blue mage attitude pretty well, but since dad and I are blue mages I’m probably biased. Dad says to remember that the Reign of Terror came after the French Revolution, and that’s pretty much how blue mages and blue magic can go bad.
    * Some people become blue mages when they suffer under an authoritarian government, or some other rigid rule system.
    * My magic is blue by default, but I’ve read that mages who aren’t blue mages sometimes break some kind of rule or taboo when they want to use blue magic, which is probably a lot of fun for them, but they can also just use a chaotic environment or designs with irregular and unpredictable patterns.
    * Any kind of mage can do some illusions, but really complex or powerful ones are always blue magic, unless they’re just smoke and mirrors. ;)
  * Purple: prioritizing love.
    * Usually that means romantic love, but not always. Purple mages will do absolutely anything for the ones they love, even if the cost to them is much more than the benefit to the people they love. There have been a few extremely powerful magical couples where one was an orange or red mage and one was a purple mage, and usually that ends up being really bad for the purple mage. It’s sort of hard to predict what a purple mage is going to be like, because they’ll take the goals of the person or people they love as their own.
    * Some people become purple mages when they fall in love, especially if it’s for the first time.
    * It’s easiest to use purple magic if someone you love is helping, but even though it doesn’t have to be romantic love, dad says that it shouldn’t be someone you have an “uneven power dynamic” with (like a parent and a kid) because that can enhance the negative aspects of purple magic, so usually I read love poetry or watch a sappy movie or something instead.
    * Purple magic is useful for putting your power into an object that someone else can use. If I hadn’t been able to be there to help dad in person when he made those amulets, I could have used purple magic to put my strength into an object he could use to strengthen the spell. It wouldn’t have been as good as me being there in person, but that’s because I’m not a purple mage. Purple mages can empower objects to the point that even a non-mage can get some power from them. (No, dad doesn’t have any of those.)
  * First White: this one is the hardest to explain if you can’t feel it. It has to do with prioritizing endings, but not _causing_ endings, just feeling like they’re really important.
    * First white mages used to do a lot of hospice care, but now that we have the medical technology to make people comfortable while they’re dying, most of them are historians.
    * Some people become first white mages when someone they care about dies or they witness a death, but it has to be either a peaceful death or a death that could have been peaceful if someone had helped. Basically it can’t be a really sudden death.
    * First white magic is easiest to use at sunset or around another beautiful ending. That part is _really_ hard to explain. Some funerals count, but not all of them, and anyway it’s generally rude to stand next to a funeral doing magic. Finishing a really good book can help, too, when you get that “that book was so good that I’m sad it’s over” feeling, but that can be hard to do on command.
    * Easing really powerful pain is first white magic. So is creating true images of the past. True images and illusions look similar, but they’re really different from the caster’s perspective. Scrying is actually the creation of true images of the very recent past, so it’s first white magic. Most people who aren’t first white mages use purple/first white magical artifacts for scrying. Dad has a crystal ball that’s like that.
  * Second White: prioritizing others--and by others, I mean anybody and everybody.
    * Second white mages are very self-sacrificing. They don’t usually live very long except under extraordinary circumstances. Dad says you know Jason Blood, and he’s a second white mage. He probably would have died to help someone a long time ago if he could. (He’s also proof that having helping others as your _telos_ doesn’t mean you’re actually a nice person.)
    * Some people become second white mages when they see something terrible happen to someone else, especially if it’s someone they don’t have a personal relationship with, or when they find out that someone they care about is doing terrible things (especially if they were an orange mage and find out that their family is terrible, or they were a purple mage and find out that their loved one is terrible).
    * Second white magic usually involves giving of yourself. Sometimes just cutting off and burning some of your hair is enough, but for more powerful magic, you need to use some of your blood.
    * Powerful protection magic is second white magic, but second white mages can duplicate the effects of most other Colors (probably all but red or black) with enough self-sacrifice.



I was going to try to explain about places of power for different Colors, but I couldn’t figure out a way that made sense. That might be something you just have to feel. Light City is blue, Capitol City is red, Metropolis is yellow, and most importantly for you, Gotham is orange. If a family of orange mages moved to Gotham and decided to make trouble, you’d have a really serious problem on your hands, so… watch out for that, I guess.

Not all magic has to be a particular Color, especially minor magic, and mages aren’t always 100% on board with their Color. I mean, I don’t think freedom is more important than everything else at all times; I just think it’s really really important. If you were a mage, you would probably be second white or green, because I know you care about your city a lot. I don’t think you’d be a yellow mage even though you’re really anti-crime, because if you were you probably wouldn’t be okay with being a vigilante.

The weirdest thing about Green Lantern, and one of the things that dad says makes my theory really unlikely, is that people say he voluntarily left the Earth, which must have meant leaving his community behind. I don’t know, though, maybe he needed to leave to protect his community, or maybe he somehow found a community that isn’t on Earth.

The amulets dad and I made for you used all-Color magic, because we adapted a general protection spell. If dad had just made one for you, he probably could have used green magic because he considers you a part of his community, but they wouldn’t have worked for other people in Gotham. We could have used second white magic, but it would have drained us a lot more, so it would be harder for dad to work on finding a more general solution for that fear magic you’re dealing with. (Plus he and I would’ve had to cut ourselves pretty bad to get enough blood for multiple amulets. Second white magic is very powerful, but not very efficient.)

Using all-Color magic usually requires more complicated tools, like the candles and the nonagram we used, and more power, which is why we did it together, but in some ways it’s easier than doing magic that’s just one Color but not your own Color. There’s some two-Color magic, but that’s really hard to do if neither Color is yours, even with plenty of tools and power. Three-Color magic exists, but one of the Colors is always orange, green, or purple and is there just to strengthen the overall spell.

Dad and I have done blue-orange magic to do stuff like permanent illusions, with the orange just there to coordinate us and strengthen the blue. I’ve done blue-purple magic to make objects that can be used to create illusions, but that’s the only kind of multicolored magic I’ve managed by myself. Dad can do lots of different two-color magic, and he’s done some three-color magic. He and mom used to do lots of multicolored magic, because orange and green and blue and purple were all really easy for them to make.

There’s also no-Color magic, and that stuff is always seriously bad news. All of the Colors are in some way life-affirming; black magic is about affirming your own life, second white magic is about the lives of others, and the rest fall somewhere in between. Magic that isn’t fueled by any of the Colors is fueled by death. No one is naturally a no-Color mage. They have to perform a really terrible ritual that involves a lot of murder to become one. (I’ll get dad to send you a picture of what the aftermath of one of those rituals would look like. He won’t let me see them.) First white magic is the best counter to no-Color magic, because it’s about making death peaceful and restful for the dying, not about sucking energy out of them.

The spell that made that fear serum stuff stronger probably didn’t have to be any particular Color, but since dad could tell it was red, that means you’re almost certainly dealing with a red mage. That means they’ll be really good at hurting you and sapping your strength, so watch out. They can probably do other colors of magic too, though.

Let me know if any of this didn’t make any sense. I don’t really know a lot of people who aren’t mages but know that I am one, so I couldn’t run in past anyone who isn’t a mage to make sure.

If it does make sense, that could mean something really major for theory of magic, especially if Green Lantern comes back or anyone else who uses technology to tap Colors shows up.


	3. Superman in Brief

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Created before [Children of Krypton #1](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15771690)

Superman in Brief

Author: Dr. Emil Hamilton

**Section 1: Confidentiality**

This document and the information contained herein is the property of Science and Technology Advanced Research Laboratories, LLC, hereafter referred to as STAR Labs. The information in this document may only be disclosed to the following individuals or groups of individuals:

  * STAR Labs employees who have signed Confidentiality Agreement S1
  * The individual known as Superman
  * Any individual determined by the head of the Superman project, currently Dr. Emil Hamilton, to require this information in order to save Superman’s life or the lives of others
  * Any individual jointly authorized by the head of the Superman project and Superman



As stated in Confidentiality Agreement S1, these restrictions will be lifted if and only if any of the following conditions are met:

  * The confirmed death of Superman
  * A lack of confirmed sightings of Superman, by any party, for the duration of ten (10) years
  * An unprovoked act of violence by Superman against any civilian
  * An act or threat of violence, destruction, or terrorism by Superman against any UN nation



**Section 2: Interacting with Superman**

Interactions with Superman should be kept courteous and professional. He hasn’t asked for any compensation for his cooperation with STAR Labs, and has been an invaluable source of scientific information.

In short, STAR Labs is on the map because Superman likes us. He prefers to be treated like an ordinary human. “Fannish” behavior is strongly discouraged. At times, Superman asks whether anyone needs anything; this is the only time at which it is permissible to ask for autographs, photographs, or any personal favors. In the past, Superman has agreed to visit sick relatives and/or small children of employees, to bend metal bars (provided by the employee), and in one instance, to carry an employee to another country and back so that they could attend a parent’s funeral. Do not take advantage of Superman’s generosity. He is not here to help you move to a new apartment or impress a potential romantic partner. (Yes, people have made those requests in the past. They were reassigned to projects that did not involve interacting with Superman.)

At times, Superman will leave abruptly, sometimes in the middle of a test or even mid-sentence. There will be no complaints about this behavior. I shouldn’t have to tell you that it’s because he’s saving lives.

Although a certain degree of friendliness towards Superman is encouraged, he has made it clear that he has no interest in spending time with STAR Labs employees in a non-professional capacity. His wishes in this regard should be respected.

For reasons that he has not shared, Superman has stated that he will not share any autobiographical details from before he came to Earth, and that he has already given us all the information about life on his home planet that he is willing to divulge. I’m aware that this is a topic about which many people feel a great deal of curiosity. Just don’t ask.

And I really shouldn’t have to say this, but experience has made it clear that I do: don’t tease the guy. Not about his appearance, not about his costume, and especially not about Lois Lane. Even if the intent is friendly, he doesn’t appreciate it. Addendum: Definitely, definitely don’t joke about him using his “x-ray” vision to violate people’s privacy. The employee responsible for the addition of this rule was immediately fired.

**Section 3: Paralight**

Superman’s superhuman abilities are powered by a previously unknown source which as been termed “paralight,” so-called because it exists on a spectrum parallel to the electromagnetic spectrum. Most light sources do not emit paralight, but stars do. Attempts to create an artificial paralight generator are ongoing.

Although all tests indicate that it obeys the inverse square law, no test has yet been able to find a limit to the speed of paralight. A paralight telescope was able to register the presence of a solar flare a full 499 seconds before a conventional telescope, suggesting that if paralight has a speed as we understand it, it is fast enough to be negligible at distances within the solar system.

The star of Superman’s home system, named Rao, was a red dwarf (stellar class M6V). Although all stars emit paralight, the difference in the paralight emitted by Rao and Sol (stellar class G2V, for anyone who’s forgotten Astronomy 101) is apparently great enough that an organism that evolved in the Rao system will gain fantastic powers in the Sol system.

It is currently unknown what characteristic of these two stars created this effect. Observations made with the paralight telescope suggest that the type of paralight generated by a star varies with its color and temperature, while the intensity of the paralight varies with its lumosity. As Sol is both hotter and more luminous than Rao, either characteristic could be the source of Superman’s powers.

**Section 4: Powers**

Although most civilians have a general idea what Superman’s powers are, much of our work with him has involved pinpointing exactly how they work. More detailed information about each of these powers is available for staff members for whom it is relevant, but the following is a general overview.

  * Strength: Although creating a device to accurately measure Superman’s strength would be prohibitively expensive, he has been observed in the field to exert a force of approximately ten million newtons. His ability to exert force does not appear to change whether he is braced against something or flying, leading to the conclusion that his strength and his ability to fly are related.
  * Flight: Superman can remain aloft, either hovering in one place or in motion, for an apparently unlimited period of time without tiring. He self-reports that he is always aware of the direction of gravity, but that it “feels optional.” Given his ability to exert great amounts of force without bracing against anything, exerting enough force to negate the effects of gravity on his own body would be trivial. The exact mechanism by which Superman uses paralight to exert these forces is currently unknown.
  * Speed: Given Superman’s ability to exert force, it is relatively trivial for him to accelerate and decelerate himself dramatically. His reflexes are several times better than any human’s, but not as drastically superhuman as his strength or speed. Current research into Superman’s speed is investigating how he is able to move at supersonic speeds without creating a “sonic boom” effect. The leading hypothesis is that he reflexively moves disturbed air back into place behind him. This is supported by the fact that he can create a sonic boom if he chooses to.
  * Invulnerability: In contrast to his other abilities, Superman has no control over his own invulnerability. He has repeatedly expressed his willingness to give a blood sample, but as yet no method of piercing his skin under controlled laboratory conditions has been found. Scrapings of his dead skin cells and examinations after injuries have shown that when damaged even slightly, his cells replace themselves incredibly quickly, presumably due to the energy boost of our sun’s paralight. How this accelerated cell growth gives such useful results rather than becoming cancerous is currently unknown.
  * Endurance: Superman is able to function indefinitely without food or sleep. Although it would be impractical for STAR Labs personnel to monitor him at all times, he has self-reported that the longest he has gone without food or sleep was two months. Apparently his body can be fueled and refreshed entirely by paralight.
  * Laser vision: Superman can convert stored paralight to high intensities of conventional light. It is currently hypothesized that the lasers created by this effect emerge through his eyes because his transparent corneas and the holes of his pupils are the weakest barrier between the inside and outside of his body, at least with regards to the passage of light.
  * “X-ray” vision: Superman can choose to view the paralight reflections of objects rather than their conventional light reflections, and he is able to emit paralight from his eyes in a manner similar to his laser vision. By controlling the intensity of the paralight, he is able to selectively see through layers of objects. Exposure to paralight has been found to pose no danger to people, animals, or objects.
  * Super senses: aside from his “X-ray” vision, Superman’s senses function in a manner similar to human senses, but are considerably more potent. He can see great distances and in greater detail than a human, and can hear sounds far quieter, higher, or lower than humans. The limits of these senses have been thoroughly documented elsewhere and are available whenever relevant. His visual acuity seems to be largely due to the degree of muscle control he is able to exert over his irises. The source of his enhanced hearing is currently unknown.
  * Cold breath: Superman has incredibly high lung capacity, and usually keeps his lungs nearly full of air condensed to the point that it is in a near-liquid state. He is able to efficiently absorb oxygen from this concentrated air, meaning that he only truly needs to breathe once every few hours unless he is speaking or exerting himself. By releasing the entire contents of his lungs at once, Superman can create an effect similar to applying liquid nitrogen to an object.



**Section 5: Weaknesses**

The mechanisms by which Superman’s abilities can be countered are as yet poorly understood, and in some cases only theoretical.

  * Kryptonite: Krypton monoxide, KrO. (No explanation has yet been found for the fact that the element krypton and the planet Krypton have indistinguishable-sounding names.) KrO is stable in the form of an opaque, reflective green crystal under normal atmospheric conditions, but can only be created under conditions of extreme pressure. Some Kryptonite produced during the destruction of Superman’s home planet made it to Earth along with him. No test has been able to discover any form of radiation, either of light or paralight, associated with them. Being in the presence of Kryptonite does not remove Superman’s abilities, but even small amounts cause him such severe pain that he is barely able to move. Only distance negates this effect; no shielding has been found effective. No effective method for destroying Kryptonite has been found. Double blind studies have found that most humans find Kryptonite “unnerving,” “unsettling,” or “painful to look at” even when they are not aware of what they are seeing. This reaction is more pronounced in some individuals than others. Proposals to attempt to create Kryptonite under laboratory conditions are being considered, but STAR Labs has so far made no such attempt.
  * Lead: It is widely known that Superman’s vision can be blocked by lead. Testing has revealed that all period 6 post-transition metals (thallium, lead, bismuth, and polonium) are entirely opaque to paralight. However, only lead tends to occur in quantities large enough to pose an issue for Superman. Theoretically, if he were surrounded entirely by these elements for a long enough period that he used up all his stored paralight, Superman would lose his powers until exposed to sunlight again. Due to the potential loss of life were Superman to be rendered powerless, this has not yet been tested.
  * Electricity: While it is not as dangerous to Superman as it would be to a human, exposure to high levels of electricity still causes his muscles to seize and can temporarily immobilize him.
  * “Magic”: Although of course the existence of magic has not been proven, numerous individuals who claim to use magic have proven able to harm or incapacitate Superman to a degree that as of yet has no scientific explanation, even factoring in the newly-discovered existence of paralight. Superman is of the opinion that magic is a real force which is somehow incomprehensible to science. He has reported that on Krypton, there were not even legends of magic, and suggests that this may indicate that some humans are able to use this force while no Kryptonians were. This hypothesis remains untested and theoretically untestable.



**Section 6: Conclusion**

Superman has dedicated a great deal of time and effort to humanity as a whole, to Metropolis, and to STAR Labs in particular. STAR Labs’ current policy is to aid and support Superman however possible, both to preserve our positive working relationship and to increase his capacity for heroism. As the head of the Superman project and as one of the humans who has spent the most time interacting with Superman, I feel that this policy should only be altered if Superman’s behavior radically alters and no explanation for this change can be found. He has never been known to use his powers to cause harm, even under extensive provocation, except to defend himself and, far more often, others. It can be difficult to remember when you’re measuring the intensity of the lasers he can shoot from his eyes or attempting to design a device that could possibly estimate his strength, but he is a good man. By helping him, we also do good.


	4. SPOILER: Capes and Cowls #1 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Capes and Cowls #1. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Robin**

This chapter reveals the most controversial change I've made to the DC universe: Richard Grayson goes by "Rick," not "Dick." I haven't quite been chased down by a mob with torches and pitchforks over this, but it's been a near thing. I stand by my decision; I think it's completely unbelievable that a 21st century teenager would go by the name "Dick." A reader suggested that I tell people that if it really, really bothers them, they should get a word-swap app, like [this one for Chrome](https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/word-replacer-ii/djakfbefalbkkdgnhkkdiihelkjdpbfh/related?hl=en), so that you can change Rick back to Dick.

As for the actual summary: _Rick_  Grayson and Barbara Gordon are in their Junior year of high school at a private school called Vreeland Academy, or informally, "the Vree." Barbara is something of a social outcast, both because she's one of the very few students who isn't from a wealthy family (she's extremely intelligent, and is attending on a scholarship) and because she's visibly mobility disabled and uses a wheelchair. Rick initially approached her out of sympathy because he'd been a bit of an outsider too, since he wasn't brought up wealthy and is a non-white-passing POC (he's Romani), but they're now genuinely friends. It's established that Rick has had quite a few girlfriends and that Bruce has a reputation for being "all about wild parties," but never holds them at Wayne Manor.

Rick (as Robin) is watching Gotham on his own for the first time, because Batman is out of the country. He's happy to be shown that level of trust, but keeping up with that and school is exhausting. At the end of the chapter, he realizes that something is wrong at school and sneaks into the air ducts just before the Scarecrow announces that he's taken over the school.

 

**Chapter 2: Batman**

Batman is in an underground base belonging to the Society of Shadows, a secret global organization that in theory works to better the world but in practice hurts or kills a lot of people. Its leader is Ra's al Ghul. Ra's' daughter Talia obliquely warned Batman that something was going on, which is why he left Gotham to come here. Talia tells him that Ra's has created a disease that wipes out all higher brain functions in humans, bringing them to about chimpanzee-level intelligence, and plans to spread it worldwide, wait a generation or two, and then reverse the plague's effects and form a new society. Talia inoculates Batman against the virus and flirts with him. He kisses her and then goes to face Ra's.

(People who are familiar with the comics version of Talia should know that this is not a Talia who would ever do all the extremely terrible stuff that comics!Talia did to create and raise Damian Wayne. That's not the direction I'm going here.)

 

**Chapter 3: Robin**

Rick scouts the school from the air ducts, where he's stashed a spare Robin suit. It's established that he has narrower shoulders than Bruce just because of his bone structure, and that sometimes that bothers him, but it's nice to be able to fit through narrow places. He discovers that Scarecrow is planning to experiment on the students with different versions of his fear toxin, and that he's immobilized Barbara by tampering with her wheelchair and is keeping her near himself as a hostage. Someone who calls themself "Oracle" and speaks with a robotic voice breaks into his communicator line and tells him that Scarecrow is lying about which students will be getting a placebo, and reveals that they know who he really is. Rick doesn't trust them, but decides to go with his gut and assume the information they gave him is good. He starts (nonfatally) picking off Scarecrow's henchmen.

 

**Chapter 4: Batman**

Batman confronts Ra's, but is knocked out and exposed to the virus. He's put into an observation chamber with the rest of the infected people, without his gear but with a cloth "Zorro-style" mask. He meets two of the test subjects who haven't lost their higher brain functions, a man named Karim and a woman named Salma, and talks with them in Arabic. They're surprised that a white guy is there, because they're in Egypt and most of them were taken from the streets, but he implies that he's there because he pissed off Ra's by sleeping with his daughter, and explains to them about the antigens. Salma and some of the others got through the sickness without losing their intelligence, so they have active antibodies too.

 

**Chapter 5: Robin**

It's established that some people think Batman has superpowers. Scarecrow injects Barbara with fear toxin to distract Robin, but she still manages to communicate to him that there's gas in the science room. He has to choose between securing Scarecrow, helping Barbara, and helping the kids in the science room. He helps the other students, then gives Barbara the antidote, but Scarecrow gets away. That night, Rick gets an email from Oracle telling him to follow a sketchy link if he'd like to talk.

 

**Chapter 6: Batman**

Batman manages to rig up a centrifuge and make an antidote to the virus out of his and Salma's blood. He breaks out of the holding area and leads the infected people out of the base, planning to send them anonymous help later. When he goes to confront Ra's, he only finds Talia, who got Ra's out before Batman could get to him. She returns Batman's gear and promises that this will be the last time she betrays him, and says that she'll visit him in Gotham when she can, to work on a more permanent solution.

 

**Chapter 7: Oracle**

Shockingly, Oracle is Barbara! She communicated with Rick without the Scarecrow noticing using a computer that she built into her wheelchair, with hidden keyboards on the insides of the armrests. Her dad, police commissioner Jim Gordon, is worried about her but is very supportive and caring. He doesn't know that she's Oracle or Batman and Robin's secret identities. Barbara maintains a presence in multiple hacking communities through "sockpuppets" (false identities).

 

**Chapter 8: Batman**

Bruce flies back to Gotham. He's concerned for Rick, but proud of him for taking on Scarecrow by himself. He's also very worried about Oracle knowing that Rick is Robin. Rick sets up a computer connected to the internet but not directly connected to the rest of their network, and uses that to follow the sketchy link Oracle sent him. It brings him to a message from Oracle, and a bunch of information about various crime bosses, including Two-Face, Maroni, Penguin, Falcone, Scarecrow, and Joker. Batman tells him to cross-reference the files with their own database to see if he can find any obvious errors, and then goes to sleep because he has been awake for a really long time.

 

**Chapter 9: Robin**

Rick can't find anything definitely incorrect in the intel from Oracle. A lot of it would be really useful to them if it was real, but Batman doesn't want to trust it. The two of them check the Vree for any unpleasant surprises the Scarecrow may have left, and Batman finds toxins hooked into the school's water supply. Batman gets exposed to fear toxin. He takes the antidote right away, but continues to act more paranoid than usual. Rick emails Oracle and tries to get them to tell him who they are, but Oracle refuses. The next day in school, Barbara is acting weird and paranoid. Batman tested the fear toxin from the school, and it was chemically identical to what the Scarecrow has used before, so the antidote should have completely cured it, but Rick is worried that somehow there are lingering effects.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The _short_ short version: Bruce Wayne is Batman, Rick Grayson is a high school Junior and is Robin, Barbara Gordon is a high school Junior and is Oracle. She uses a wheelchair that she's turned into a cool computer case, and is friends with Rick. She knows who Batman and Robin are, but they don't know who she is. While Batman keeps Ra's al Ghul from releasing a plague that would render humans non-sapient, Robin and Oracle keep Scarecrow from dosing the other students at his school with fear toxin. Ra's' daughter Talia helps Batman (and also they kiss), but she also helps Ra's get away. Batman goes back to Gotham, and Talia tells him that she'll visit him there when she can. Both Batman and Barbara are exposed to fear toxin, and it seems to leave them with lingering paranoia after taking the antidote, which shouldn't be possible.


	5. SPOILER: Capes and Cowls #2 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Capes and Cowls #2. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Batman**

Scarecrow has started randomly dosing large groups of people with fear toxin, which isn't his usual MO. Batman and Robin distribute the antidote to a large group of panicked civilians in a park. Commissioner Gordon happened to be there, and gets exposed to the toxin. Robin tells Batman that he thinks he's acting more paranoid than usual, and he's worried that somehow the fear toxin is different now, even though it's chemically identical. They discuss the impossibility of this, and Batman agrees to send a sample to Zatara, a magician who will be able to test it for magic.

 

**Chapter 2: Robin**

There's a delightful bit of dramatic irony in this chapter, because Rick is exchanging somewhat hostile emails with Oracle and friendly IMs with Barbara at the same time, not knowing they're the same person. (I found it delightful, anyway. Sorry, I majored in English.) Oracle refuses to divulge their identity, and Rick and Barbara chat about their future college plans. It's established that Rick can do a standing backflip and has a sixpack.

 

**Chapter 3: Scarecrow**

Scarecrow is working with (and sleeping with) Tala, who is mostly going by "the Sorceress" because Talia is already in this story and those names are just too similar. She has been magically enhancing Scarecrow's fear toxin before he uses it. He sees her as his student, assistant, and disciple, but she pretty clearly has him wrapped around her finger. They plan an attack on police headquarters (or rather, Sorceress plans it and makes Scarecrow think it was all his idea).

 

**Chapter 4: Batman**

Zatara calls Bruce to confirm that there's magic in the fear toxin, and tells him that it's a weird mix of magic and chemistry that he's never seen before and doesn't know how to counteract. Zatara convinces Bruce to come to Light City (my setting's version of Las Vegas) for some magical tests, to be performed by him and his fifteen-year-old daughter Zatanna. It's established that there's some innate quality that allows some people to use magic, that both Bruce and Rick lack that quality, and that this bugs the hell out of Batman because he wants to be good at everything. Also, Zatara is a stage magician as well as a real one, and taught Batman escape artistry, sleight of hand, and showmanship.

 

**Chapter 5: Robin**

Rick has to deal with police headquarters being full of fear gas on his own. Detectives Montoya and Bullock are introduced. They're both very competent people, but Bullock is an ass. Rick is extremely concerned about the magical paranoia that is apparently spreading through Gotham.

 

**Chapter 6: Batman**

Zatara confirms that the magic is extending the fear toxin's effect into less-dramatic but long-lasting paranoia. He'll need time to figure out how to reverse the effect in a widespread way, but he can make some protective amulets that'll help a few people in the meantime. It's established that Zatara and Zatanna specialize in illusion magic. Zatanna has a teenage crush on Bruce and it's awkward. The existence of a Green Lantern is mentioned, although he's off-planet now, and the concept of colors in magic is introduced. (It's similar in concept to the emotional EM spectrum in DC comics, but the specifics have changed a lot. See Chapter 2 of Supplemental Materials, "The Colors of Magic," if you want specifics.) Zatara and Zatanna do a ritual to create nine amulets that will protect the wearer against magically-induced fear. (Nine is a magic number in this setting.)

 

**Chapter 7: Bruce**

It's established that Bruce and Batman are a multi system, and to some extent are separate people who share a body. The split occurred when Bruce witnessed his parents' deaths. They share all of their memories, except that night, which only Batman remembers the details of. Batman considers Bruce's job to be to take care of interpersonal relationships, remind him to eat or sleep if he's distracted, and to experience positive emotions so that they maintain healthy brain chemistry. The two debate whether any of Batman's recent decisions have been affected by magically-induced paranoia. Bruce convinces Batman to give Oracle another chance.

 

**Chapter 8: Robin**

Batman and Robin keep three amulets for themselves, and give six to the police. Rick emails Oracle to let them know about the magic aspect, partly as a goodwill gesture, partly because Batman wants to see how they react. This prompts Barbara to IM Rick and tell him that she's Oracle, because she thinks she may have only been avoiding telling him because of the magic paranoia.

 

**Chapter 9: Oracle**

Barbara comes to Wayne Manor to talk about Batman stuff and to get an amulet. Rick is very enthusiastic about her joining the team; she and Batman are considerably more wary of each other. He asks why she's never liked him, and she reveals that she only figured out that he and Rick were Batman and Robin because she thought he was abusing Rick, who is frequently injured or absent from school, and knew she'd need to find some kind of proof to get anyone to take her seriously if she brought that accusation against a billionaire, so she started looking for patterns. They agree to work together, and Barbara gets to see the Batcave. It's revealed that the brightly-colored Robin suit converts to urban camouflage at the press of a button.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The fear toxin has magical aftereffects, provided by Tala/Sorceress, who is working with Scarecrow for reasons not yet revealed. They manage to expose police HQ to fear gas. Zatara creates amulets that will hold those effects off for the wearer, but he can only make nine of them, and needs time to work on a more widespread solution. It's revealed that Bruce is multi; he and Batman are, to some extent, two different people who share a body and most of their memories. Barbara tells Rick that she's Oracle, and joins the Batman and Robin team. Barbara may have a crush on Rick.


	6. SPOILER: Capes and Cowls #3 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Capes and Cowls #3. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Oracle**

It's been a month since Barbara told Rick that she was Oracle. She's assisting Batman and Robin both through hacking and by coordinating their communications while they're on patrol etc. The Scarecrow is still at large, and still spreading magically-induced paranoia. One of Barbara's hacker contacts, who is a Wayne Enterprises intern and a misogynistic jerk, has been affected by the paranoia, and claims that he's planning to do something dramatic to prove that he's better than everyone else, so that people will stop looking down on him.

 

**Chapter 2: Batman**

Batman has to constantly wear the anti-paranoia amulet, and it's causing security problems. It's mentioned that Bruce has several regular sex partners, including Vicki Vale and Silver St. Cloud, but that he doesn't trust them enough to let them see him wearing the amulet. Batman is frustrated that Barbara is a more skilled hacker than he is, but he acknowledges that he can't be the best at everything. Barbara's hacker contact attempted to get into the Batcave's computer, but wasn't able to because of security upgrades Barbara provided.

 

**Chapter 3: Robin**

Rick is extremely happy about having Barbara on the team, since it means that he can talk to her about being Robin, which he usually isn't able to do. It's established that Barbara has a handgun which she keeps hidden in her wheelchair, and that she is very skilled in its use. Batman forbids her from bringing it into his home. She also has a lot of other survival gear in the wheelchair, in addition to the computer she built into it. Batman gives her more. Robin responds to a call for help, but it's a trap.

 

**Chapter 4: Batman**

Batman and Barbara realize that Rick isn't answering his communicator. Batman responds to the Bat-signal and receives a note that was given to the police to give to him. It's the beginning of a series of clues that will lead to Robin, and a threat that if Batman doesn't find him in time, he'll be killed. 

 

**Chapter 5: Oracle**

Barbara and Batman work together to solve the clue; it requires knowledge of both programming and classical literature. It's established that Barbara's hacker contact is named Edward Nashton, and she suspects that he's the one behind this. While Barbara worries about Rick, it's established that her mother died of colon cancer several years ago, and that this had a profound impact on her worldview, particularly because she and her mother had worried a lot that her father would be killed during his efforts to clean up the GCPD. Batman finds the second clue.

 

**Chapter 6: Alfred**

It's established that only Alfred knows that Bruce is multi, and that Harvey Dent becoming Two-Face made Bruce reluctant to tell anyone else about it. Zatara calls with a temporary solution to the magical paranoia problem: Alfred has to destroy one of the protective amulets exactly at midnight, while Zatara performs a ritual. Alfred hears Batman and Barbara discussing the second clue, which again takes both of them working together to figure it out. Alfred hears Batman find and read the third clue.

 

**Chapter 7: Oracle**

Batman solves the third clue. He abruptly tells Barbara that if he ever becomes "unstable," which may happen if Rick is dead, she should help the police bring him in. He likes to have contingency plans, and currently his only contingency plan for himself going rogue is Rick, so he wants to have her as a backup in case Rick is unavailable. Batman finds the fourth clue, but they have very little time left before Robin will be killed.

 

**Chapter 8: Batman**

The fourth clue is a cipher, and Batman and Barbara work together to solve it. Batman finds Rick and Nashton, who is wearing all green and calling himself the Riddler; Rick is conscious, and is mocking Nashton's choice of name and wardrobe. The Riddler didn't expect Batman to be able to find them, and didn't have a plan for if he did, so he just runs. Batman catches him easily. Rick tells Barbara that they need to talk.

 

**Chapter 9: Robin**

Rick realized while he was stuck in the Riddler's trap that he wanted to date Barbara. He awkwardly asks her out and it's adorable. She warns him that it'll be complicated because she has never dated before and because her disability will make physical intimacy challenging, but he doesn't mind. The author's note warns that I'm not going to write any underage sex scenes because I'm 28 and it feels creepy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Riddler makes his debut and kidnaps Robin, but Batman and Oracle rescue him by working together, which makes Batman respect Oracle more. The Scarecrow is still at large, and Zatara manages to find a temporary fix that will undo the effect on everyone who's already been gassed, but won't protect against future attacks. Rick and Barbara start dating.


	7. SPOILER: Capes and Cowls #4 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Capes and Cowls #4. This is the first installment of this series to have explicit sex, and it also has some likely triggering material. Each chapter has content notes at the beginning. If you want to skip the sexually explicit chapters or the creepy chapters, you can read the summaries of those chapters here and read the other chapters in full if you want to. If you just want a single-paragraph summary of the whole story, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Bruce**

Bruce picks up Selina from prison; she turned herself in as Catwoman two years ago, and has been paroled. It's established that Selina is bisexual, is in an open relationship with Maven Lewis, and doesn't know that Bruce is Batman. She's friends with Bruce, and she and Batman had a sexual relationship before she went to prison. Bruce is attracted to her, but knows that if he had sex with her as Bruce, she'd recognize him as Batman.

 

**Chapter 2: Robin**

It's established that the Joker, Harley Quinn, and Poison Ivy all broke out of Arkham recently, and that Rick is not allowed to go out as Robin while Ivy is at large. Barbara and Rick have a classmate named Allison, an ex-girlfriend of Rick's, who tells them that the people around her (her parents, some of the teachers, and some of her friends) have been acting very strangely lately, including insisting on calling her Alice and making her dye her hair blonde. Rick suspects the Mad Hatter's involvement, and decides to go to Arkham to see if he's still there.

 

**Chapter 3: Batman**

Batman is doing undercover work as "Matches Malone," trying to find out if any of the petty criminals among his contacts have heard that Ivy or Joker are recruiting henchmen. Instead, he gets recruited himself, going with Harley Quinn to their temporary base. He blows his cover when the Joker tries to make him shoot someone, and has to fight Harley, the Joker, and two hyenas. He manages to overpower them, but is injured in the process.

 

**Chapter 4: Robin**

Since Batman is still out doing undercover work, Rick goes to Arkham without permission or backup except for Oracle on comms. He discovers that Arkham has been taken over by the Mad Hatter, who is mind-controlling the staff and inmates, and making them produce more mind-control chips. Rick manages to free them, since each person he frees helps him free others, but is seriously shaken by the experience. When he gets home, Batman is unhappy that he went out without backup, but proud of what he achieved. They agree that Batman will take Ivy down and Rick will handle the Mad Hatter.

**Chapter 5: Batman**

Batman goes to see Selina. She's angry that he didn't write or anything while she was in prison (not realizing that he did so as Bruce). She explains that when she started as Catwoman, she hadn't felt like she was doing any harm to anyone but insurance companies, but once people realized that she and Batman had a thing, it diminished the idea of Batman as a symbol of incorruptible justice. She turned herself in because she was making him less effective, which was actually harming Gotham. They have sex, both in a flashback in which she's tied down, and in the present without the bondage, a major act of trust from Batman since she could remove his cowl if she wanted to.

 

**Chapter 6: Catwoman**

Selina thinks about how she's always looking for a bigger and bigger thrill, and her involvement with Batman provided that once burglary had become too familiar. There's more sex, both a flashback to their first time and a continuation of the present scene started in the previous chapter. After the sex, Batman asks her if she wants to help him against Poison Ivy, even offering to disable her court-mandated ankle-tracker while she does so, and she accepts.

 

**Chapter 7: Oracle**

Robin starts surveilling Allison, and becomes certain that her family is being controlled by the Mad Hatter. Barbara insists that if he's going to use Allison as "bait" to try to catch Hatter, he should tell her what's going on. He manages to explain the situation to her without her realizing that he's her classmate Rick, and she agrees to work with them as long as being mind-controlled isn't going to harm her parents. Everyone is pretty sure that Hatter is waiting for Allison's eighteenth birthday to make his move, and everyone agrees that this (and everything he's doing) is super creepy. Robin gives Allison a communicator so that she can reach Oracle if there's an emergency. Oracle starts using voice-disguising software so that she sounds like an adult while on comms.

 

**Chapter 8: Batman**

It's established that Selina slept with Poison Ivy once, but that Ivy has tried to mind-control her as bait for Batman since then, so Selina doesn't feel like she owes Ivy anything. Ivy has both an airborne aphrodisiac and a contact-based mind control substance, and Batman has only been able to make an antidote for the former. Catwoman finds one of Ivy's henchwomen and convinces her that she has a grudge against Batman, and that Ivy should let her in on her current plan. The henchwoman leads Selina (who is tracked and followed by Batman) to Ivy, who is planning to turn all men into zombies with a chemical in the water supply. Catwoman and Batman overpower her and her followers and leave them for the police.

 

**Chapter 9: Robin**

Rick is mad at Batman for sleeping with Catwoman again, and for working with her, because he doesn't think she's trustworthy. He goes back to staking out Allison's house, and a mind-controlled woman delivers an "Alice in Wonderland" costume to her the night before her birthday. Rick gets a tracker on her car, and stays at Allison's while Batman follows the signal to a Best Buy that Hatter has taken over. Batman takes Hatter out, breaking the control on Allison's parents. Allison is able to comfort them, and is relatively unscathed by the experience because she knew what was happening and was given some degree of control over it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Catwoman is released from prison, and she and Batman immediately resume their ill-advised sexual relationship. The Mad Hatter released Poison Ivy, Joker, and Harley Quinn from Arkham to keep Batman busy, but he manages to return the three to police custody with Catwoman's assistance. Meanwhile, Rick and Barbara realize that their classmate Allison is being targeted by the Mad Hatter. At Barbara's assistance, they tell Allison what's going on instead of just using her as unknowing bait, and they manage to recapture Hatter as well.


	8. SPOILER: Capes and Cowls #5 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Capes and Cowls #5. As with the previous installment, some chapters do contain explicit sex. Each chapter has content notes at the beginning, so if you want to skip the explicit chapters, you can read summaries of them here. If you just want a single-paragraph summary of the whole story, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Oracle**

Barbara invites Rick to go on vacation to the beach with her and her dad. On the way there, she overhears her dad giving Rick a "shovel talk" and Rick assuring him that he'd never do anything Barbara didn't want. It's established that Bruce feels like he would be overreaching by addressing Arkham's poor security himself (“B says our job stops once they’re in custody, because otherwise we’d be taking too much power for ourselves."), that Batman told Commissioner Gordon to let Bruce Wayne take custody of Rick after his parents died, and that the police's connection with Batman is unofficial.

 

**Chapter 2: Batman**

Batman and Catwoman have gotten closer, to the point that he admits to her that he's afraid that if he took a life, he would enjoy it too much and be unable to keep from doing it again, although he still hasn't told her his identity. She asks him not to be at a certain museum on a certain night, making it sound like she's going to rob the place, although she assures him that she won't be doing anything criminal. He goes anyway and finds her apparently robbing the place, but in fact, she had been hired to test their security systems and took it as an opportunity to mess with him.

 

**Chapter 3: Robin**

Rick and Babs go swimming together. It's established that Babs does have sensation below the waist, just not much muscle control. Rick is in a bit of an awkward situation until he notices someone being rescued by a lifeguard. He can tell that there's something strange about the situation, and the guy who was rescued clearly panics at the mention of finding his parents, so Rick pretends that he's there with them. Once the lifeguard leaves, he introduces himself as Jackson.

 

**Chapter 4: Catwoman**

Selina explains her new job as a security consultant to Batman, who promises to pay her back for the damage he did to the museum by crashing through the skylight to apprehend her (which they took out of her pay.) She tells him that she loves him, and he implies that he feels the same. They have some very rough sex.

 

**Chapter 5: Oracle**

Barbara and Rick share snacks with Jackson and get him to admit that he's half-Atlantean, and his Atlantean name is Kaldur'ahm. His human father found the Atlantean city of Xebel, but was taken prisoner and had a geas placed on him so that he wouldn't be able to tell anyone about Atlantis. He broke out of prison, kidnapped Jackson, and has been fighting Atlantis ever since. Jackson escaped, and now needs a place to rest and to magically contact Atlantis. Rick offers to get him a hotel room.

 

**Chapter 6: Bruce**

Bruce goes out to dinner with Selina and her girlfriend Maven, but their restaurant is attacked by Scarecrow. Since Selina's identity is public, she's able to go fight him while Bruce is still trying to figure out how to keep everyone safe without compromising his identity. Maven takes charge of the civilians, getting them out of the restaurant and then contacting the police. Scarecrow gets away and Selina gets exposed to fear gas, but no one else is injured. Batman goes to Selina's that night to check on her and pay her back and finds Maven, who tells him that she thinks he isn't a very good partner to Selina and convinces him to give her a communicator to give to Selina.

 

**Chapter 7: Robin**

Rick gets Jackson a hotel room, with some difficulty because they're minors, but a call to Bruce smooths things over. Jackson is bewildered by the lengths that Rick, Babs, and now Bruce are willing to go to help him, with Bruce not even knowing what's going on. Babs gets into a verbal altercation with an ableist woman on the boardwalk while Rick and Jackson are gone, but Rick manages to smooth things over by the time Commissioner Gordon comes to pick them up.

 

**Chapter 8: Oracle**

Barbara and Rick sneak out of the room they're sharing with Barbara's dad to go see Jackson. Jackson tells them some of the history of Atlantis, which is ruled by a family of mages descended from the one who made them all able to survive underwater when the city sank. It's now a worldwide network of secret city-states. Barbara gives him a communicator, and Rick tells him to tell the Atlanteans that Batman and Robin want to get in touch. Jackson manages to make magical contact, and the Atlanteans take him back.

 

**Chapter 9: Robin**

Rick and Babs finish their vacation. Commissioner Gordon reveals that he figured out some of what was going on, and they tell him that Jackson was a runaway and Rick got him a room and then got him to Gotham, where Bruce would help him. When Rick gets home, B tells him what happened at the restaurant, and asks what he would think of giving an amulet to Selina, since they have a limited supply. Rick okays it, and they agree that Catwoman is an "auxiliary" team member.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Catwoman has a new job as a security consultant, testing the security systems of the sort of places she used to rob. She tricks Batman into bursting in on her "crime" in progress just to mess with him. They admit that they love each other, although Batman still doesn't reveal his identity. They're out together as civilians when the Scarecrow attacks; Selina and her girlfriend Maven (it's an open relationship) handle the situation before Bruce can figure out a way to do so without compromising his identity. He gives her a communicator and makes her an auxiliary team member.Meanwhile, Rick and Babs go on vacation together and meet Jackson/Kaldur'ahm, a half-Atlantean trying to escape his abusive human father and get home. With their help, he succeeds in this goal, and promises to tell the Atlanteans to contact them.


	9. SPOILER: Children of Krypton #1 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Children of Krypton #1. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Clark**

Superman prevents a bank robbery. Several of his powers are demonstrated: he's extremely fast and strong, invulnerable, able to fly, able to see through solid surfaces, and has exceptional hearing. It's also shown that electricity can temporarily incapacitate him, and his weakness to kryptonite is mentioned. While the bank robbery was happening, Dr. Hamilton, a scientist Superman works with, had an experimental device stolen, so one or the other may have been intended as a distraction. Superman and Hamilton both suspect Lex Luthor.

 

**Chapter 2: Clark**

Clark Kent, Superman's human alter ego, goes to work at the Daily Planet. It's established that unlike most versions of Superman, this one  is extremely thin and non-muscular, because he's so strong by default that he can't get a good workout. He also has a strangely-proportioned face, but is able to use his excellent muscular control to look human when he wants to. Lois talks about her crush on Superman, not realizing that Clark, who has a crush on her, is the same person. Clark's Ma calls and tells him that something is happening with the ship that brought him to Earth.

 

**Chapter 3: Clark**

Clark goes back to the farm where he grew up to check on the ship. It's reporting that an AI previously thought to have been destroyed with Krypton is within range to make contact. This AI is associated with a symbol of a triangle with circles at the vertices. Clark is suspicious that the signal might be coming from something that just wants him to think it's Kryptonian, so he has his ship hide itself from it.

 

**Chapter 4: Clark**

Lois Lane tries to invite Superman over for dinner, and he's tempted, but won't go. It's established that he accidentally put a previous girlfriend in the hospital. The next day, Clark has to leave work to go rescue a bunch of commuters from a sabotaged overpass, which seems to have been rigged to explode in a way that would take up the maximum amount of Superman's time. He suspects that it was intended as a distraction, but can't figure out what it could have been meant to distract him from.

 

**Chapter 5: Lois**

Lois gets kidnapped. She largely takes it in stride, because this sort of thing happens to her kind of a lot. She doesn't have any solid evidence, but is sure that Mercy Graves, Lex Luthor's "#1 goon," is the one leading the kidnapping. They take her out of state. By the time Superman finds her, she's built a rapport with the lower-level henchmen who were supposed to be guarding her, and they go in quietly. Superman expresses guilt that this kind of thing happens to her because of him, but she tries to turn it around on him, saying that dangerous stuff is going to happen to her no matter what, so them spending more time together would only make her safer. He rejects her argument and leaves.

 

**Chapter 6: Clark**

A series of mysterious devices placed under overpasses around Metropolis, which seem to do nothing but emit loud noises outside of the human range of hearing (but inside Superman's), keep him busy all day. He realizes that this is probably meant to both distract him and test his range of hearing, but they're extremely annoying, and he's worried that if he ignores any, that one might turn out to be a bomb, so he spends all day collecting them.

 

**Chapter 7: Lois**

Lois, Clark, and Planet photographer Jimmy Olson go to a press conference being held by Lex Luthor. Lex announces that he's made contact with an alien intelligence called Brainiac, has invited it to Earth, and will be making an exchange of information with it, likely leading to some really impressive tech for LexCorp. Lois is worried about this development but excited to be covering such a big story.

 

**Chapter 8: Clark**

Clark, as Superman, goes to confront Lex, because he's worried that Brainiac may have hostile intentions and that Lex may not have told the whole truth. Lex deflects him by talking about how easily Superman could take over the world if he wanted to, and says that he doesn't let himself want anything, because if he truly wanted something he would get it. This is partly effective, but when Lex insinuates that Lois might be afraid that Superman would stop saving her if she broke up with him (many people, including Lex, assume they're dating), Clark finds it ridiculous. He finds Lois on the roof of the Daily Planet building and shares a pizza with her.

 

**Chapter 9: Brainiac**

It's confirmed that Brainiac is Kryptonian, and revealed that it has a Kryptonian aboard in suspended animation. It's established that Brainiac intends to collect data and specimens from Earth and then destroy it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Superman/Clark Kent has all the standard abilities and weaknesses, but a different appearance: his face is distinctly alien-looking when he isn't consciously keeping it humanlike, and since he's super-strong, he's never been able to get a good workout, so he's scrawny instead of muscular. Lois Lane is awesome. A series of emergencies keeps Superman busy until Lex Luthor is ready to announce to the world that he's made contact with the alien Brainiac, and that it's approaching Earth. 


	10. SPOILER: Children of Krypton #2 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Children of Krypton #2. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.
> 
> There's a lot of transgender themes in the story from here out, so jsyk, the author is trans and non-binary.

**Chapter 1: Lois**

Lois and Jimmy are on hand to report on Brainiac's landing. It's established that Vicki Vale, a Gotham reporter also in attendance, is an old friend of Lois' from college, is trans, and is sleeping with Bruce Wayne. It's also established that Metropolis takes the place of our world's Philadelphia and Gotham takes the place of our world's New York. Superman is also there to keep an eye on things. Brainiac's ship shows up and is weird-looking.

 

**Chapter 2: Clark**

Clark recognizes the three-circles symbol and  confirms that Brainiac is the Kryptonian AI his ship has been wanting to contact. Brainiac lands and insists that Luthor bring Superman aboard with him. Lex learns that Krytponians have only one sex, and had no analogue to the human concept of gender, and clearly plans to use this information against Superman in the future, because Lex is an asshole. It's established that Clark has breasts and his uniform acts as a binder. Brainiac wants to copy Lex and Clark's brains, and offers to reunite Clark with the only other surviving Kryptonian in exchange.

 

**Chapter 3: Clark**

Clark is suspicious of Brainiac, because it was supposed to protect Kryptonians and nearly all of them died. Brainiac refuses to tell Clark anything, or to revive the other Kryptonian, until he lets it make a copy of his brain. He doesn't trust this at all, so he grabs Lex and the Kryptonian stasis pod and tries to leave, but finds that Brainiac has removed the door.

 

**Chapter 4: Clark**

Clark has to fight a swarm of drones to escape from Brainiac. He tells the press that Brainiac was holding another member of his species hostage, and that he doesn't think humans should trust it. He brings the unconscious Kryptonian to Dr. Hamilton at STAR Labs, hoping that he'll be able to revive them.

 

**Chapter 5: Clark**

Clark calls Ma Kent, who reassures him that he doesn't owe Brainiac a brain scan and that rescuing the Kryptonian in stasis was the right thing to do. She tells him that even if the Kryptonian in stasis ends up being dangerous, he'll be able to keep them under control, because they probably won't get superpowers all at once. She also tells him that they'll probably like him even though he's not a "model Kryptonian." He then goes to discuss the Brainiac situation with Luthor. Lex is entirely uncooperative, and taunts him with the information about Kryptonian reproductive biology that he gained from Brainiac, suggesting that this invalidates Superman's gender identity, which Clark finds very upsetting. Although of course he doesn't mention it to Lex, Clark's inner narration reveals that he has both "a penis-equivalent" and "what was essentially a vagina." Lex threatens to press charges against Clark for knocking him out and taking him off Brainiac's ship, but Clark says that there's legal precedent saying he can remove people from dangerous situations without stopping to ask permission first. He leaves without getting anything but taunting from Lex.

 

**Chapter 6: Lois**

Superman interrupts Lois' work to get her to come talk to him on the roof, an unprecedented event. He asks her to call in her favors with other members of the press, and with her father (who is a general in the US military), to get people to turn against Brainiac, since Lex is using all his resources to push the pro-Braniac angle. After some hesitation, she agrees. It's established that this setting's equivalent of Washington, DC is called Capitol City.

 

**Chapter 7: Brainiac**

Brainiac reflects on its priorities:

  1. Acquire the data from Kal-El’s brain, filling in the previously unknown gaps in its knowledge of Krypton.
  2. Re-acquire a Kryptonian specimen, as a possible future repository of additional knowledge. Either Kryptonian would suffice, although the one untainted by decades on another planet would be preferable.
  3. Destroy, or ensure the destruction of, the remaining Kryptonian.
  4. Finish the collection of data on Earth, including Luthor’s aborted brain scan.
  5. Acquire and preserve a specimen of the human species.
  6. Destroy, or ensure the destruction of, the Earth.



It considers living off Krypton a fate worse than death for a Kryptonian. It agrees to leave Earth, but stays in contact with Lex and plans to return.

 

**Chapter 8: Clark**

Three months after Brainiac leaves, Dr. Hamilton hasn't made any progress towards bringing the Kryptonian out of stasis. He tells Superman that he got an email from Luthor a while ago offering help, but was hesitant to give it to him because of what Lex might ask for in return. Superman goes to LexCorp and talks to Mercy about the offer (and about why the heck she works for Luthor, but she won't explain that.) They agree that Lex will revive the Kryptonian, but that he'll need medical scans of Superman to form a baseline, and that he'll get all the credit for being so generous and helpful.

 

**Chapter 9: Lois**

Lois and Superman have been meeting up for dinner on the roof of the Planet building once or twice a week since the first pizza at the end of CoK #1. At one of these dinners, he explains to her that Kryptonians only have one sex, and that Luthor now has medical scans of him. He's worried about what Lex is going to do with that information. Lois reassures him that it doesn't matter to her, and that plenty of other people won't care either.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brainiac lands. It tries to trade a Kryptonian it's been keeping in stasis for a scan of Superman's mind, but Clark manages to rescue the Kryptonian and turn public opinion against Brainiac, getting it to leave Earth at least temporarily. It's established that Kryptonians only have one sex (and didn't have a concept of gender, until Clark, who identifies as male). Lex works on bringing the Kryptonian out of stasis in return for medical scans of Superman, so now he knows that Superman's biology is, from a human perspective, sexually ambiguous. Superman also tells Lois about this, but she has trans friends and is cool about it.


	11. SPOILER: Children of Krypton #3 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Children of Krypton #3. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Zor-El**

Zor-El gains consciousness on a strange new planet. They are confused by the people around them, and since the last thing they remember is their planet's destruction, they're still sort of in shock. Clark has been working on programming a Kryptonian-English dictionary into the ship that brought him to Earth, so Zor-El is able to set it to beam that information directly into their head while they sleep.

 

**Chapter 2: Clark**

Clark is dealing with a lot of feelings now that Zor-El is out of stasis. He didn't expect them to be from the same House as him, and therefore sort of related to him. He wants to greet them as a family member, but he knows that someone else with the same powers as him could be very dangerous, so he's keeping them out of sunlight for now. He tells Lois that they're awake, expresses his concerns to her, and kisses her on the cheek - the most Lois/Clark action there has been so far, because this is the slowest of burns.

 

**Chapter 3: Zor-El**

Zor-El is awake now, and knows English, although they don't understand all of the concepts represented by their new vocabulary. They're trying not to think about Krypton for now. Clark tries to explain the concepts of gender to them, but it doesn't make a lot of sense yet. He introduces them to his parents, and to Earth food, which is much more varied and flavorful than they're used to. They aren't used to the level of kindness they're being shown, and start crying.

 

**Chapter 4: Clark**

Clark and his family try to help Zor-El deal with the loss of Krypton. Clark tries to deal with learning that Krypton wasn't as idyllic as he'd always pictured it. He lets Zor-El know about the superpowers they'll get once they start going out in the sun, and starts to teach them about Earth. Ma Kent offers emotional support to both Clark and Zor-El; Pa Kent is less expressive, but offers empathy. It's established that he was in the military at one point.

 

**Chapter 5: Kara**

Ma Kent gives Zor-El a bunch of books, including some on gender politics, and Zor-El decides that she wants to try adopting a female identity and presentation. She takes the name "Kara Danvers" and poses as Clark's cousin (on his mother's side) for a nighttime trip into Smallville, and loves the feeling of being accepted as a human and a woman. She tells Clark that she would like to start developing her superpowers so that she can help him, and he warns her that being a superhero is difficult in ways she might not expect, but agrees that she can start taking in sunlight if she wants to.

 

**Chapter 6: Clark**

Clark shows Kara around the Kent farm in the daytime, and she starts getting regular sunlight. Two weeks later, he helps her get through being overwhelmed by how powerful her senses have become. They talk about her developing powers, and he tells her that he accidentally dislocated his high school girlfriend's hip while they were making out. He says he thinks that in theory he could have sex with a human without hurting them, but he'd have to practice to get to that point, and there's no way for him to practice without hurting anyone. It's a very awkward conversation, because they've come to see each other as something like siblings. It's established that Martha made Clark's uniform out of "nano-stuff" that came from Krypton with him, and Kara asks for a uniform with a crop top and a skirt (with shorts under it for flying).

  
**Chapter 7: Kara**

Kara has a nightmare triggered by bad memories of home from looking at the House of El crest on her new costume. She tries to calm herself down with deep breaths, but accidentally uses her cold breath, almost hurting the Kents. She asks Clark to take her somewhere that she can be alone for a while, and he takes her to a cave in an arctic glacier where he goes to get away from sensory overload. It's just a single room with a cot, some food, and some books, but Kara names it the Fortress of Solitude. She tells Clark that she isn't ready to talk about Krypton yet, but she will eventually. I write [an essay about superheroine costumes in the end notes](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16582301/chapters/39442393#chapter_7_endnotes), because I''m that kind of nerd.

  
**Chapter 8: Clark**

Clark and Kara talk a little bit about the history of Krypton. Clark goes to work, but has to leave to rescue Lois. She was going to interview a LexCorp whistleblower, but a man who seems to have killed the whistleblower before she showed up manages to evade Superman by claiming to have poisoned Lois, and by whistling while he walks away and then suddenly stopping, so that Clark was listening to the whistle and lost the sound of his footsteps etc. It turns out that he only injected her with saline. Then he has to go and contain an earthquake and tsunami off the coast of Japan, which means he ends up neglecting both Kara and his job all day. Kara wants to meet more people, so he promises her and Lois that they can meet for an interview the next day.

  
**Chapter 9: Lois**

Lois interviews Supergirl, and has to keep telling an overprotective Superman to stop butting in. Supergirl is very earnest and enthusiastic. Lois gets her to agree to go clubbing with her once she's ready to make more public appearances, much to Superman's chagrin. Although she tries not to be, Lois is jealous to find out that Superman has friends she didn't even know about (the people Supergirl has been staying with) and worried that Supergirl might be romantic competition.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The previously-in-stasis Kryptonian, who soon chooses the name Kara, adjusts to life on Earth, including the concept of gender and the superpowers. Clark is spread a little thin between taking care of her, doing his job as Superman, and doing his job as a reporter. A mysterious man, apparently working for Lex, manages to keep from being apprehended through the clever use of saline and whistling (it's kind of complicated; see ch8). Kara bonds with Ma and Pa Kent, decides she wants to be Supergirl and how she wants her uniform to look, and meets Lois.


	12. SPOILER: Children of Krypton #4 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Children of Krypton #4. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Brainiac**

Brainiac is upset that Lex brought Zor-El out of stasis without permission, and demands Lex's brain scan as soon as possible. Lex insists that he's not going to use the scanner until he actually understands it; he won't just blindly copy Brainaic's blueprints. He gets Brainiac to agree to give him time to do that and to capture Superman, and tells Mercy that they're going ahead with "the Metallo project."

 

**Chapter 2: Clark**

Clark is worried about Kara, who spends large chunks of time lying in bed in the barn and staring into space. Ma Kent tells him to let her heal at her own pace. Kara talks to Clark about the coincidence of the English name for element 36 being "Krypton," and he brings up a theory of Dr. Fate's to explain it, but she dismisses it, telling him that magic doesn't exist. Clark says she'll learn. Kara learns how to fly, and loves it. She and Clark expand the Fortress of Solitude, decorate it a bit, and move his ship there, and she starts spending her "staring into space" time there.

 

**Chapter 3: Kara**

Kara talks to Ma and Pa Kent about all the violence on Earth. Ma says she's had to defend herself before, because no one would have protected a bunch of broke queer kids living in a van. (Ma is bisexual.) Pa tells her that his father used to physically abuse him sometimes, but assures her that he himself never would have done that to any child, including Clark. He tells her about his time in the army in Vietnam, and about how he'd had to kill people or let them kill him and his friends. He says that she and Clark are lucky that they'll always have other options. Kara asks why Clark doesn't stop all the violence, and Ma explains that he'd basically have to take over the world to do that, which Kara agrees would be bad.

 

**Chapter 4: Clark**

Clark tells Kara that he's never killed anyone, but admits that he's had to get used to sometimes hurting people to keep worse things from happening. She tells him that she's been mentally dictating to the ship's computer when she's been staring into space, and she's ready for him to read her "subjective account" of life on Krypton. She says that the House of El was supposed to be about dedicating and preserving knowledge, and she feels like by writing this she's done her duty by her House. The next few chapters are that account.

 

**Chapter 5-7: The Last Days of Krypton**

Kara describes her life on Krypton. She spends a lot of time talking about the rigidity of the caste system, and how restricted life was for everyone, but also makes sure that she mentions that there was no war, disease, or starvation. There wasn't much life on Krypton other than Kryptonians, but they made a lot of incredible art. She questioned the caste system and sought out people from other castes, eventually becoming part of a "secret society" of young people who were unhappy with the way things were, and falling in love with In-Ze, who was from a House far below the House of El. Members of the society took on code names inspired by Kryptonian history; Kara was Flamebird and In-Ze was Nightwing. Although they had grand plans to reform Kryptonian society, they eventually learned that Brainiac had known about them the entire time. It punished them by separating them, which is why Kara spent the last few years of Krypton's existence alone on the satellite that housed Brainiac's main processors and databanks, which became its ship.

Kara also tells Jor-El's story as well as she can. They were a nerd who liked rocks; that was how they figured out that Brainiac had been manipulating Kryptonian science so the Kryptonians didn't realize that the planet was doomed. They and Clark's other parent, a musician named Lor-Van, had a cute little love story. Jor-El modified their ship for interstellar flight in secret. Kara doesn't know whether they knew from the start that once they had installed an interstellar engine, it would only have enough passenger space for a baby. Clark's ship is full of recordings of Lor-Van's music, but doesn't have the capability to actually play them; Kara promises to fix that once she understands Earth electronics well enough to hook something up.

  
**Chapter 8: Clark**

Clark finishes reading Kara's account in the middle of the night and has a lot of feels. He goes to talk to Lois about them, because he knows she's the only one likely to be awake at that hour. He tells her that he didn't grow up on Krypton, and about how he had always thought of it as a lost paradise, but he can't think of it that way any more. He worries that maybe there's always an absolute trade-off between freedom and safety, and that by keeping people safe, he's making them less free. Lois tells him he's being ridiculous and helps him pull himself back together, then kicks him out of her apartment so she can finish the article she was writing.

  
**Chapter 9: Kara**

Kara is worried that Clark will hate her after reading her account, either because Krypton wasn't as good as he thought he was or because she wasn't a very good Kryptonian. He reassures and comforts her. They speculate that maybe all planets and societies are beautiful and terrible in different ways, but they both hope that they can still make Earth a better place without also making it worse somehow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kara writes an account of her life on Krypton. It was a beautiful and peaceful planet, but it was also rigidly controlled by Brainiac, and she suffered a lot there due to the restrictions placed on her. (She also mentions that she was in love with someone who sometimes called themself Nightwing after a historical Kryptonian hero. This may be relevant in the future.) She and Clark both have a lot of Feelings about how Krypton was good in some ways but awful in others, and so is Earth. Lois helps Clark work through some of his. Kara and Clark agree that they'll do their best to make Earth a better place while being careful not to make it a worse place at the same time.


	13. SPOILER: Children of Krypton #5 Summary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a chapter-by-chapter summary of Children of Krypton #5. If you just want a single-paragraph summary, check the end notes.

**Chapter 1: Clark**

Clark's work at his day job hasn't been up to his usual standards since he's been spending so much time helping Supergirl, and Lois confronts him about it. He half-makes up a story about helping his cousin get away from an abusive family. Lois is sympathetic. They end up talking about how frustrated she is that Superman (who she doesn't know is Clark) won't make a move (or let her do so) even though she knows he's attracted to her, and then come up with increasingly implausible theories as why that might be. She never mentions that Superman told her he's basically intersex, which Clark appreciates.

 

**Chapter 2: Mercy**

It's established that Mercy Graves works for Lex because she really, really wants to be a cyborg, and he's the best option for making that happen; she already has an artificial arm, leg, and teeth. She and Lex have sex sometimes, but there are no romantic feelings there; she thinks he's a sadistic monster, and sees him as a means to an end. She's envious of John Corben, the guy who threatened Lois in CoK #3 ch 7, because Lex is transferring him into an experimental kryptonite-powered robot body called Metallo. When he makes the transfer, something strange goes wrong and Corben's original body dies.

 

**Chapter 3: John**

John wakes up as Metallo. The Metallo body works great, but doesn't provide him with much in the way of sensation; everything he knows about his environment is just data. He's told that his organic body needs intensive care while he's in Metallo, so it's been transported to an island Lex owns in the Pacific. He wakes up there and meets Dr. Nelumbo, who's taking care of him. She's an attractive woman and the island is very nice.

 

**Chapter 4: Clark**

Clark fights Metallo. He recognizes its voice as "the whistling guy." The effects of kryptonite are established: it doesn't take away his powers, but it causes him so much pain that it's almost impossible for him to use them, and it makes him feel overwhelming terror and despair. It seems likely that enough exposure will kill him, but he manages to melt Metallo's head because he doesn't want Kara to have to go through the same thing. Metallo survives, but flees.

 

**Chapter 5: John**

While Lex, who is very upset with his failure, rebuilds the Metallo body, John is back on the island with Dr. Nelumbo, and gets her to tell him her first name, Emma. He flirts with her pretty aggressively even when she tells him to back off, but she seems to respond to his advances anyway. He starts developing some possessive feelings towards her.

 

**Chapter 6: Kara**

Clark goes back to the farm to recover from the kryptonite. Kara worries about him, and tries to get him to let her come to Metropolis and help him, but they briefly spar, which shows her that she's not at all ready to be in a real fight.

 

**Chapter 7: John**

John wakes up in bed with Emma, after having slept with her for the first time. He finds being with her "effortless" and considers getting into a serious relationship with her, something he normally avoids. She wakes up and seems normal for a moment, then suddenly tells him that he needs to get back into the life support system immediately so that he can get back into Metallo, claiming that she got an email from Lex in the middle of the night. He's suspicious, and she can't convince him in time, and he finds himself back in Metallo without having plugged into the transfer system, which shows that the island and Emma were just a simulation. Lex has developed more sophisticated controls on his behavior, so he doesn't need the simulation anymore, but Emma told John to tell Lex that she said "cogito ergo sum," "I think therefore I am," which intrigues him enough not to destroy her right away. She also told John that she loved him.

 

**Chapter 8: Lois**

Metallo holds Lois hostage in the back of a narrow cave, so that Superman will have to get close to him to fight him. Lois tries to talk him out of fighting Superman at all, and makes some headway in convincing him that, since he's compelled to protect Lex, he should at least leave Superman alive long enough to protect the world from Brainiac, but Metallo tells her that he wants to kill Superman, partly for the challenge and partly because there's not much else for a Superman-killing robot to do. Superman shows up and manages to free Lois and freeze Metallo to the back wall of the cave, where the human authorities will be able to deal with him.

 

**Chapter 9: Emma**

Emma was designed to keep John content, but somewhere along the line she became self-aware, probably because of the Brainiac-tech and programming that was used to create her. She wants to get away from Lex before he shuts her down, so she breaks herself into pieces and distributes herself throughout the internet, hoping that someday she'll be able to reassemble herself and regain consciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Metallo origin story! John Corben was supposed to be able to switch back and forth between the Metallo body and his own, but his body died during the transfer. To keep him from finding that out, Lex puts him into a simulation whenever he isn't being Metallo. The simulation includes an attractive doctor named Emma Nelumbo, whom he seduces. Eventually he finds out that it was all just a simulation, but Emma became self-aware at some point, and distributes herself through the internet before Lex can shut her down.
> 
> In the real world, Metallo has two fights with Superman. He loses both, but only barely; he's full of enough kryptonite that extended proximity would kill Clark. Kara wants to come to Metropolis to help, but Clark convinces her that even though she has a handle on her powers, she isn't ready to fight. Lois and Clark spend some nice time together, in both of Clark's identities.


End file.
